Dog loses job over lawsuit RI "Omar -- the drug-sniffing, 100-pound German shepherd, whom Chief Donald E. Kettelle called one of his best cops -- hasn't worked since last September." A lawsuit by the dog's handler for overpay ended any further consideration for the dog's future at the Scituate Police Department. Why pay when "I can get it (K-9 drug dog) for nothing from the state police," the chief said."... (why indeed). [Providence Journal]

Naughty stray gets a top dog job TX "One look at his X-rays and you know Speed shouldn't be alive. Birdshot is lodged in his head, neck and left hind leg. And there's a slug planted near his spine. Speed, a black Labrador retriever, has come a long way since getting shot at least three times during his days as a chicken-chasing stray..." Now, Speed sniff out drugs for the US Customs Service and the very traits which almost got him killed are the ones that make him a top performing drug sniffing dog... [Houston Chronicle]

Lawyer jailed for dog mauling death SF In the most gruesome and public dog mauling trial of the century, San Francisco Superior Court Judge James Warren sentenced lawyer Marjorie Knoller to the maximum four years sentence. "You knew those dogs were dangerous, you knew you could not control them, you took them outside anyway and it was clear at some point, someone was going to get hurt by those dogs."... [Anova.com]

Bride was no dog; dogs dress up wedding What do you get when two dog lovers get married: a doggone fun dogshow plus a wedding... [Morning Call Features]

This weekend was a special one for our dog. We took him to both Petco (Saturday) and Petsmart (Sunday): the two stores he hasn't been able to visit for three months because of his hip replacement. Now that's he's finally mended, we know he can manage to walk on those slippery floors.

At Petco, we bought him a doggie dental cleaning toy: sandpaper rolls  with a yummy flavored coating. The idea is that the dog will scrub his teeth while biting through the roll. Fat chance with our dog. He was delighted to try the roll and he very gingerly positioned it in his paws and proceeded to lick the roll, turning it as he demolished the coating: he never bit it once, but he managed to stain our carpets red and his face acquired a nice reddish hue. No, he licked the roll to death and then discarded it. (Guess we'll have to brush his teeth after all.) The carpet's in the wash.

We also bought him a squarish treat dispenser, "designed for hours of fun." The idea is that your dog will retrieve food from the dispenser by pushing it around on the floor. He showed absolutely no interest and never gave it a second look. We had added little treats but the dispenser tube won't turn (it's supposed to). Now, how do you clean it? You can't take it apart and you have to shake all the dog food out by turning it over and over (a human time waster, that's what it is). okay. Maybe we'll give it to the dog down the street; he's more food oriented than our dog. Maybe we'll take it back (with food stuck inside); sorry, Petco.

We saw the doggy cooler bed there; we'd tried that last year. Of course, last year, it broke during the night and waterlogged our wood floors.  The dog cooler's a great idea if you can trust plastic not to split at the seams.

We also purchased a Gentle Leader at Petsmart: size medium, designed for 30-60 lbs. We forgot that he has a giant head and of course, it's waaay too small, even though he's 50 pounds of small dog (not counting his giant head and giant feet). It's a full three inches too short around his neck. It's going back: maybe we can exchange it for a 90-150 lb size -- his head will probably just fit in the extra large Gentle Leader. 

Pitbulls 2nd most popular breed in New York City: New York City's "Department of Health’s annual ranking of most-popular dog names and breeds puts the beloved mutt atop the list for the second year in a row." Pit Bulls rose to second place, displacing Rottweilers who slipped to third place  in the most popular dog's rankings... [New York Newsday.com]

Man bites pit bull during its attack on his dog NY When a pit bull attacked a man's dog while he was out walking it, the New Yorker did whatever he could to defend it: he bit the pit bull back, right through to the skull. While defending his dog, he was attacked by two more more pitbulls and received 37 puncture marks... [Anova.com]

'Angel Dog' program brings normalcy to hospitalized patients NE "Dogs are separate from the rest of the world. They don't care if your leg is in the air or if you are in a chair. They are just happy to know a person and happy to have a person petting them." The remarkable story of a young woman who overcame her brain injuries to help other people achieve normalcy during illness and again in life.  "`To transfer despair into hope, to help the disabled find new abilities, to believe in the force of will, is to share the power of love,' epitomizes Katie Schueths, who volunteers for the 'Angel Dog' program which brought her joy during her hospital stays...[Lincoln Journal Star]